Epsilon Archive for Student Projects

Abstract

This paper is intended to provide a picture of which associations water can wake in the humanmind from the perspectives of garden history as well as from that of environmentalpsychology. I hope to paint a fairly broad picture of our perception of water that can serve as abasis for discussion and as a starting point for different forms of design work in landscapearchitecture. The historical perspective emphasizes the importance of water as a condition forthe emergence of gardens and in a wider perspective the importance of water in early cultures.Also, I describe a picture of how water has been used throughout the history of gardens fromearly Egypt to the baroque era. The garden history analyzed from an art historical perspectivegives a picture of human associations to water, and the history behind these associations ispresented. As a compliment to the art history approach, I have chosen to highlight ourassociations with water from the perspectives of environmental psychology and evolutionaryscience. Finally, I will return to the historical use of water and discuss how this could havebeen influenced by our biological and psychological preferences. My conclusion is that ourbiological background can have been an important factor in the shaping of mythology and artin gardens.